If you went by the many commercials that assault all of us each day,
getting new refinance rates on your home is no more difficult than going
to the grocery store to buy a loaf of bread. While it is true that
mortgage rates are probably lower than they have been in decades and lower
than they will be for a long time in the future, that doesn’t mean that
entering into a process to find new refinance home mortgage rates is going
to be as simple as the marketing gurus on TV would like you to think.
Taking on the project of getting out of a high interest home loan and into
mortgage refinance rates that are much lower can pay off big time. You can
sometimes get a refinance mortgage rate that is 3-5% lower than what you
are paying now. The result in terms of your monthly payment can be huge.
But along with the great benefits of getting better refinance home
mortgage rates, there are some hidden dangers that the commercials on TV
will not tell you about. Here are the top five.
1. Online Mortgage Refinance Companies May Mark Up the Rate
It probably comes as no surprise that those offers that come on TV don’t
tell you the whole story. There are some hidden surprises that will come
up if you actually used a service you found from a blind ad through the
internet or on TV to find good refinance home mortgage rates. It is a good
rule of thumb that if they can advertise for your business, they have ways
to make plenty of money off of the transaction once they get you on the
hook for a new mortgage.
One way that a company that is trying to get control over your mortgage
can make plenty of money is to adjust the mortgage rate as closing gets
closer. They might advertise 5% mortgage refinance rates. But if they show
up at the closing with a rate of 5.25% or 5.5%, that small adjustment
means plenty of profits for the mortgage company. So make sure you lock in
the advertised rate and that you have the option to get up and walk away
if it changes.
2. Origination Fees Can Sneak Up on You
It is good to know up front before you even start looking into to
refinance home mortgage rates that you will be paying closing costs and
many of the same fees you paid when you closed your original mortgage.
Before you commit to refinancing a mortgage with one particular lender,
get what the fees will be defined well in advance.
In that you know exactly how much your new mortgage will be for, you
should be able to define those fees with some precisions so there will be
no surprises at closing. One of the most commonly used "scams" that are
used to get more money out of you while your mortgage loan is being
processed is the origination fee. Make sure that this isn’t just a fancy
word for a false expense that doesn’t have anything to do with the loan.
3. Closing Costs Can Eat Up Your Savings
The entire idea of finding a good deal to refinance home mortgage rates is
to get your costs down. But there is no getting around it, a new mortgage,
even with your existing mortgage company means you will have to pay some
closing costs. How much those closing costs will run can vary
significantly and mortgage companies are not averse to hiding extra
charges in those fees hoping you will just pay whatever it takes to get
the loan.
It pays to shop around and nail down closing costs before you commit to
let one company refinance home mortgage rates for you. By getting quotes
for several lenders, you can make pre-defined closing costs a condition of
them getting the loan. And when you have several mortgage offers in front
of you with all closing costs defined, you are the one who is running the
show on what you will pay at closing.
4. It is Possible to Get Turned Down
It is important to keep in mind that when you are starting the process to
refinance home mortgage rates, it is still a new loan. It seems like it
could be an assumed that since you own a home, which gives you solid
credit, you should be able to refinance any time you want to. But you will
still have your credit evaluated. If your credit score is too low and the
lender fees the risk is too high, you could get turned down. This can be a
tremendous disappointment if you were looking forward to that much lower
mortgage rate.
5. Penalties That Can Trap You in That Loan Forever
Even though the motivation for finding a loan that will give you the
ability to refinance home mortgage rates, it pays to invest in some legal
help before you sign a contract that will be in force in your financial
life for the next 30 years. One hidden danger that can live in that
contract is a stiff penalty for early pay off of the loan. That means that
if you win the lottery or just want to refinance again down the road that
penalty is waiting for you
If you find that kind of penalty, you should at least have your lawyer
revise the contract to take the fees out. It might be a good idea to find
another lender. If they laid that kind of hidden trap for you because it
implies that they might not do honest business down the road. And when you
enter into such a large and long-term financial relationship such as a
contract to refinance home mortgage rates, you need and deserve an honest
lender.